alexander's widow, urging britain to impose sanctions on russia, after an investigation that concludes that vladimir putin probably ordered the former spy's murder. hello there, i'm felicity barr, and this is al jazeera live from london. also coming up, a child soldier turned uganda rebel commander appears before the international criminal court. and a police officer is k l killed in tunisia. and cracking down on

frac-ers. ♪ hello, an official inquiry has concluded that alexander's mudder was probably approved by the russian president, vladimir putin. he was a critic of vladimir putin, he died after drinking tea laced with poison. the inquiry found that russia's fsb, the successor to the kgb spy agency directed the killing, and putin is likely to have signed off on it. two russians carried out the poisoning. the u.k. has summoned russian's ambassador in london over moscow's refusal to cooperate.

the kremlin says the investigation may poison the relationship between the two countries. >> reporter: the long awaited inquiry has lead investigators right to the doors of the kremlin. the findings say the russian president himself probably approved of the murder, because of a long personal feud. the inquiry chairman also implicated the head of the fsb, calling the killing a state-sponsored assassination. >> there is a strong probability this when he poisoned alexander, he did so under the direction of the fsb, the federal security service of the russian federation. >> reporter: the report reiterates the earlier belief that these former agents

poisoned alexander with radioactive polonium 210 at this london hotel. the report also says this was their second murder attempt. both deny the killing. calling the allegations nonsense. and here is how the russian foreign ministry responded. >> translator: there was only one aim, and it was clear from the very beginning to demonize russia, demonize its official representatives and its leadership. this specific kind of investigation has not been transparent. >> reporter: alexander's wife and son say they are happy with the findings. they are urging the government to punish russia. >> i'm calling immediately for the exclusion from the u.k. of all russian app pratives. and sanctions and travel bans against named individuals,

includi including [ inaudible ] and mr. putin. >> reporter: the british government says it will freeze the assets of the two. >> the conclusion that the russian state was probably involved in the killing is deeply disturbing. >> reporter: the former agent had defected to the west, becoming a british citizen, only to be hunted down and poisoned on british soil apparently by his former colleagues. the new report suggests there was personal antagonism dates a back to the 1990s. he even accused president putin of pedophilia. the legal finding could influence what the government does next. but with putin's cooperation needed when it comes to defeating isil in syria, a full

diplomatic row is the last thing london wants. >> now let's go to rory challands live in moscow. the kremlin has spoken in the last hour, what has been said? >> reporter: well, the spokesperson for the kremlin has alluded to the famous british sense of humor, saying that perhaps this inquiry is an example of some kind of settle or elegance former british joke, essentially he's pouring scorn on the inquiry, on this report, saying it doesn't hold any kind of water whatsoever. now that's unsurprising seeing as the inquiry has pointed the finger right at his boss vladimir putin. we have heard from other parties in russia. we have heard from the accused men themselves, andrew, called this nonsense, he said it was absurd, it was basically an example of london's anti-russian

feeling, that russia was using this skeleton in the closet to pursue its own political agenda. if you pass all of the comments coming out of russia in the aftermath of this public, that's what you get down to, the allegation that britain has politicized this whole affair. the foreign ministry said this inquiry was biased and flawed from the start, and they had no expect that suddenly before the publication it was going to become impartial. >> reporter: is russia likely to take any action over these allegations. >> reporter: the foreign ministry is saying that this is going to have some sort of impact on the bilateral relations between the united kingdom and russia, an unnamed source was also speaking in the media earlier on in the day, saying something very similar, so the russians are basically

warning the brits that this is not going to go unanswered in some way. they haven't said specifically what that way is going to be. but as to whether there is going to be any kind of accommodation for what this inquiry has -- has pointed to, i.e., are the two men at the heart of this, andrew and dimitri going to face any kind of prosecution? well, i can't see that there is any chance of that happening. for one thing, lugavoy is a member of the russian parliament so he is immune from prosecution. and the russians have said there is not going to be any investigation or prosecution of these two men. >> rory, thank you. the international criminal court is determining whether there is enough evidence for a

former ugandan rebel leader to stand trial. he faces 70 counts of war crimes, relating to a massacre in northern uganda. the former child soldier rose through the ranks of the lord's resistance army. malcolm webb spoke to community members who gathered to watch the proceedings. >> reporter: dozens of people have gathered here, because of the massacre that happened here in 2004 which dominic is being charged with ordering. they are watching the proceedings on a tv. one of the limiting factors is the proceedings are broadcast in english, and most of the people here don't speak english because their education was interrupted by the war, so they only speak the local language, so they are not getting to understand fully what is going on, until they get snippets of translation at the

end. but none the less, people say they want to see him on trial, because they say this community really suffered because of his action. this woman's eight-year-old grandson was shot dead as she ran for her life in may 2004. at the time it was a crowded camp. she says a bullet entered one of her cheeks and blew off the other side of her jaw, she has had to eat by sucking her food ever since. >> translator: he and his soldiers killed the people here. and i was one of his victims. i want him to be given a death sentence. if he ever comes back, he will kill us all. >> reporter: he had been an nra commander since the 1990s. he was brought to the international criminal court a year ago, just after his surrender. the rebellion by the nra started nearly three decades before. many in northern uganda say it

was in response to atrocities committed by government forces, but the rebels turned against the people they claimed to event, abducting tens of thousands of children, forcing them to be fighters, ports, and sex slaves. the government forced the population into camps. thousands died of disease. gladys was in a camp when the nra attacked. at the time this whole area was full of huts and survivors say the rebels came from this direction, setting them on fire. there is a memorial to those who died. and the icc's prosecutor says dominic ordered the attack. we met one of his wives and their children. his family says he lived here until he was 14, and shouldn't stand trial because he was abducted by the nra on his way home from school. his wife was always abducted, age just nine, and then married

to dominic. >> translator: i want to see the nra leader and the president of uganda before the icc. my parents and dominic's parents were killed. >> reporter: for many here, justice has been slow if not absent. >> victims keep asking why only the nra is being prosecuted? and why not the government in the major challenge with the icc, they cannot prosecute crimes retrospectively, so they only look at crimes that occurred after 2002. and that is where the challenge has been in prosecuting other actors. >> but there's interest in the pending trial because of what happened here. the courts now due to decide if there's enough evidence for the trial to go ahead. malcolm web, al jazeera, uganda. thousands of protesters who took to the treats of tunisia on wednesday are calling for

further demonstrations. they are accusing the government of turning their back on a region hit by poverty and unemployment. one policeman died after his car was overturned during the protests. >> reporter: the message taken by the government were dismissed by people here who say that they want to see some genuine deep reforms implemented, not only quick fixes like saying that the government is ready to offer 5,000 job opportunities for the people here. tension is mounting, and hundreds of people are converging on the main streets in this street, and it seems that this anti-government movement is building up across the count -- country. we have seen some rallies in other cities. people have said that they took to the streets in 2010 hoping for a democracy and better life. they are seeing some sense of

democratic reforms, but their living conditions have not changed. this is why they are taking to the streets and they say they will continue their fight until their demands are met. an al jazeera journalist has gone missing in the yemeni city of ta'izz. he was last seen on monday evening. there is concern he may have been abducted. al jazeera is calling for his immediate release. still ahead on the program, turkey's work plan to stop syrian refugees crossing illegally into europe. and e-cigarettes and vaping are banned in several parts of malaysia. ♪

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♪ welcome back. and a reminder of the top stories on al jazeera. a british inquiry into the poisoning of a former spy has concluded that vladimir putin probably approved his murder. the international criminal court is determining whether there is enough evidence to have a former child soldier stand trial for war crimes. russian air strikes have killed nine people in syria, three women and two children were among the dead. the group of volunteers tried to pull survivors from the rebel. the villages are heavily populated with civilians who have already fled the fighting

in other parts of idlib province. the majority of syrian refugees are living in neighboring turkey. there are now plans to offer them work permits to discourage them from crossing illegally to europe. as andrew simmons reports. >> reporter: it's a family business in a city where textiles are one of the main exports. five vacancies have just been filled. only turks could apply, but that could soon change when syrian refugees get work permits. under the new plans, one in ten of the work force here could be syrian. the idea is to improve in - in -- integration with syrians such as these casual workers in a fast-food cafe. this man was lucky enough to have a turkish sponsor to register the business, so he borrowed the money and set

himself up. now he is making enough to give his family a basic lifestyle. he believes work permits could make others feel like he does. >> translator: i'm against the idea of going to europe. because i'm waiting to go back to my own country. if we don't go back to rebuild it, who will? >> reporter: but he is in a better position than most. in this part of town, nearly everyone is syrian, and nearly everyone is desperate to improve on an extremely basic way of living. right now many syrians are reliant on casual work to get by. estimates put the figure at around 400,000 doing meanal -- memeanal -- meanal -- meanal work. opinion is divided as to whether work permits can radically change things.

>> translator: there won't be problems mixing with turkish workers, but it's important that syrians who claim to have skills and qualifications have the documents, otherwise they won't get jobs. >> translator: we would like everybody, turks and syrians to work and look after their families, but we are worried about employers who have the tendency to hire cheap syrian labor, rather than the local work force which could mean more turkish workers end up unemployed. >> reporter: but this city has strong manufacturing exports. and many economies say it will work. in a significant step for the columbian peace process, the government has released some

imprisoned farc fighters. it isn't yet clear how many fighters have been released, but the president previously said he would pardon 30 farc fighters. the prisoners had been convicted of non-violent crimes such as rebellion and illegally possessing firearms. a mosquito-born virus has sickened many in columbia. the columbian government is warning women to delay becoming pregnant. in brazil the cases of babies born with unusually small heads continues to rise. >> translator: out of the 3,893

total number of cases of the disease, we have already confirmed 224 cases that show typical abnormalities. what are these abnormalities? they are those that strongly suggest infection by the virus during pregnancy. mill stair -- military commanders in pakistan say they have enough evidence to identify the attackers of a university. a sprinter group of the pakistani taliban has claimed responsibility. >> reporter: if you ask the common citizens of this country whether they feel safe or not, they will tell you a big no, and that is primarily because the security is always provided to the politicians and the country's leadership. the people of this country are vulnerable, the education institutions are vulnerable, and

despite claims from the government they are able to enforce security, you can see that the attackers are able to pick out these soft targets. >> being a parent, i am worried and concerns about my own kids when they are going to school, and i am always looking toward my phone that when there will be a call, god forbid of bad news from the school. >> translator: if the education institutions are not secure? where should we go for our education? there is no security despite the government's action plan. >> reporter: it is virtually impossible to be able to give security to the level that is required. the big problem also emanates from the fact that the taliban pakistan fighters are now finding a sanctuary across the border in afghanistan from where they can operate with impunity, they have logistical and economic support, and they have

local support within this province and across the country where they have facilitators. a military spokesman is saying they have credible information they were able to monitor the telephone calls of these attackers, and they were all traced to afghanistan. italy's prime minister is cracking down on public sector workers in his drive to tackle corruption. those found guilty of avoiding work will face immediate dismissal. there has been a series of recent italian media investigations highlighting instances where workers were clocking into work and then leaving to go about their business. this come as a film [ inaudible ] about a man trying to hold on to his job for life has become a massive box office hit in italy.

people living in tasmania are being told to evacuate their homes. about 70 bush fires are raging out of control across the region. so far no homes have been lost. the fire service says around 36,000 hectares have been burnt so far. speaking an e-cigarette in malaysia may soon be outlawed. several states have already banned them. shop owners are worried they will soon be put out of business. our correspondent reports now. >> reporter: it's a smoking alternative that is marketed as a healthier way to give up the habit. but they are creating a health controversy across malaysia. many are asking whether it's a safer way to smoke or not. and what are the long-term health implications?

this man opened his vape store five months ago, and business is booming. all of his customers have given up tar-based cigarettes, and now vape. while selling the liquid nicotine is not illegal, he is concerned about the future. >> all of the vaping retailers, they are getting scared, because we don't know what will happen in the future. if it will be banned or not. so some of them start to sell the product below market price. >> reporter: the liquid is cheaper to buy, it's not taxed like cigarettes, and according to customers it lasts longer. >> i'll definitely stop smoking, and keep on vaping, and maybe i'll go underground. >> reporter: vaping is not safe according to several states across malaysia, who banned the sales or distribution of the e-cigarettes and e-liquid. some states are conducting

forums to discuss concerns. this is a closed door session. the media have not been invited. it allows all of the parties to have a free and frank discussion. the state here and the government itself are expected to make their final decisions very soon. others continue to voice their concern. a group of over 40 consisting mainly of medical institutions have written to the government pushing for a total ban or tougher regulation. >> you need the scientific knowledge. you need the scientific data over a period of time, but then that needs to translate to actually convincing policy makers that something needs to be done, and that will take a long time, and that's a process that is evolving, it's dynamic, and unfortunately there's no fixed time scale to that. this is one of more than a quarter of a million vapors across the country. the vaping industry in malaysia is the second largest after the usa, the government says it will

decide soon whether to regulate the industry or extinguish it all together. the head of a seventh century statute has been returned to cambodia and reattached to its body after more than 130 years. it was taken from a temple and has since been on display in a french museum. the deputy prime minister says the ceremony are symbolic of prosperity. hinduism was cambodia's main rely gown for centuries. hundreds of exquisite works of art were found in a german apartment of an elderly woman four years ago. the total value was estimated to be about $1 billion. the paintings has been take by -- taken from jewish families

by the nazis. >> reporter: munich 2012, investigators find 1280 works of art, 121 still in their frams, the rest stuffed in drawers. works with by many, many famous artists. >> translator: when you are standing in front of these works, which for a long time were believed to have disappeared or beendy destroyed, it is an incredible feeling of joy. some of them are dirty, but not damaged. >> reporter: historians consider this to be the greatest find of art stolen by the nazi regime since the end of the word war. >> the people that deal in this find of art will be fighting like ferrets in a sack to get their hands on them, and to protect their own interests, in case there is a glut of one

particular artist. >> reporter: the hall was pulled together by his father, a museum cure at it fors. now all of these years later the relatives of those forced to escape or who perished at the hands of the nazis want their heirlooms back, but proving ownership is well nigh impossible. >> we asked them first of all to prove the art had been owned by their family. we can help them if they have difficulty. >> reporter: in his one and only interview, he is quoted as saying that losing his paintings was worse than when his mother and father died, and that he considered himself to be a

steward for their safekeeping. and there's just time to remind you, you can find out much more on many of the stories we are covering, including that inquiry into the british spy's address on our website, the address is aljazeera.com. i think he's sick. i think he's a sociopath. i think he's a serial rapist. >> reporter: a former oklahoma city police officer set to be sentenced for assaulting women while on duty. the u.s. markets trying to pull themselves out of the red. detroit's public schools filing suit against their teachers after days of sickouts. and a